Would this research be possible?

[Pontius2000]

I keep seeing people posting info on the census from the Victorian era, and residences and rentals of different people.

Would it be possible to take a section of the East End where JtR was most likely residing and identify all who were registered as living in that area at the time of the murders. and then, start eliminating suspects. ie. eliminate all men who were not in an age range of say 20-45. then, try to learn which ones of those remaining somehow left the East End in 2-3 months after the MJK murder?

I realize this would be next to impossible and still would not provide any definite proof. But I think if it were able to be accomplished, you would have a relatively small pool that JtR would most likely be in.

For example, in my opinion, JtR was likely living somewhere in the vicinity of the Tabram, Nichols, and Chapman murders, which is a relatively small area. and somewhere in a direction from the Eddowes murder through Goulston St. If this block of area were determined, residents identified, and people identified, then we would have a relatively small pool of likely suspects and could start eliminating them one by one.

I realize this is probably impracticle.

[The Grave Maurice]

Sounds like an awful lot of work, Pontius. The major problem is that there were censuses taken only in 1881 and 1891, so JtR could have lived in the area, carried out his work, and moved on without showing up in the records. Besides Sam Flynn is going to come along in a while and tell us that there were 150,000 people (or whatever) living in the area you describe.

[Frank]

Hi Pontius,

I had thaughts like these, too, but the problem is that the census was taken every 10 years, i.e. 1881 and 1891. So nobody can really say who lived where in 1888, especially when you think of the common lodging houses in the East End with "residents" coming and going for a limited time only.
Otherwise it would be very interesting to have a starter for local suspects. This list could be checked against a list of people with charges like threatening behaviour, rape, ...

But I don't see how this could be managed.

Best regards,
Frank

[Pontius2000]

Sounds like an awful lot of work, Pontius. The major problem is that there were censuses taken only in 1881 and 1891, so JtR could have lived in the area, carried out his work, and moved on without showing up in the records. Besides Sam Flynn is going to come along in a while and tell us that there were 150,000 people (or whatever) living in the area you describe.

yes, the census every 10 years is a problem. but what about lodging house records and rental records? seems that several people on here have access to those sort of things.

again, it wouldn't provide any definitive proof. but it would narrow things down to a LIKELY pool of possible suspects.

also, I don't think there were anywhere close to 150,000 people living in the area I'm talking about. I think the killer was living somewhere close to the area triangular from the points of the Tabram/Nichols/Chapman murders. this area is much smaller than the overall areas of all the murders. I think he got more courageous after the Chapman murder and that the Stride/Eddowes/Kelly murders were further away from his residence.

[The Grave Maurice]

...I don't think there were anywhere close to 150,000 people living in the area I'm talking about.

I may have exaggerated, but Flynn stated on another thread fairly recently that there were some 800 to 900 people living just in Dorset Street (which was only about 100 metres long) in 1888.

As far as I'm aware, the doss and lodging house owners weren't generally known for their meticulous record-keeping.

[Scott Nelson]

...in my opinion, JtR was likely living somewhere in the vicinity of the Tabram, Nichols, and Chapman murders, which is a relatively small area. and somewhere in a direction from the Eddowes murder through Goulston St. If this block of area were determined, residents identified, and people identified, then we would have a relatively small pool of likely suspects and could start eliminating them one by one.

The police would have done these things. The apparent fact that they couln't pin the murders on any of those residents suggests that the killer wasn't among them or didn't betray any suspicious behavior.

[Septic Blue]

'72' (Blue): Tower Hamlets School Board Division, Block 'C'

... I don't think there were anywhere close to 150,000 people living in the area I'm talking about. I think the killer was living somewhere close to the area triangular from the points of the Tabram/Nichols/Chapman murders. this area is much smaller than the overall areas of all the murders. I think he got more courageous after the Chapman murder and that the Stride/Eddowes/Kelly murders were further away from his residence.

"... the area triangular from the points of the Tabram/Nichols/Chapman murders."

'72' (Blue): Tower Hamlets School Board Division, Block 'C'

A Portion of Charles Booth's "'Map Shewing Degrees of Poverty in London': In Areas with About 30,000 Inhabitants in Each; Compiled from Information Collected in 1889-1890" (My Color-Shadings)

Estimated Percentage of Inhabitants that Lived Below Booth's 'Line of Poverty'; i.e. "In Poverty":

- '71' (Purple): 32.53%
- '72' (Blue): 49.07%
- '73' (Blue): 46.50%
- '74' (Blue): 49.35%
- '76' (Pink): 24.59%


An Interpretation of a Portion of Charles Booth's "'Map Shewing Degrees of Poverty in London': In Areas with About 30,000 Inhabitants in Each; Compiled from Information Collected in 1889-1890" (Click to Enlarge in flickr)
Underlying Aerial Imagery: Copyright Google Earth, 2007
Overlying Plots, Labels and Color-Shadings: Copyright Colin C. Roberts, 2009

Estimated Percentage of Inhabitants that Lived Below Booth's 'Line of Poverty'; i.e. "In Poverty":

- '71c' (Pink): 24.13%
- '72' (Blue): 49.07%
- '73a' (Purple): 34.63%
- '76a' (Pink): 26.21%
- '71a' (Light Blue): 42.70%
- '71b' (Purple): 35.72%
- '73b' (Navy): 54.57%
- '74c' (Blue): 47.91%
- '74a' (Purple): 35.00%
- '74b' (Navy): 57.71%

An Interpretation of a Portion of Charles Booth's "'Map Shewing Degrees of Poverty in London': In Areas with About 30,000 Inhabitants in Each; Compiled from Information Collected in 1889-1890" (Click to Enlarge in flickr)
Underlying Aerial Imagery: Copyright Google Earth, 2007
Overlying Plots, Labels and Color-Shadings: Copyright Colin C. Roberts, 2009

'72' (Blue): Tower Hamlets School Board Division, Block 'C'

- The Parish of Christ Church Spitalfields (Portion, Which Lay East of Commercial Street)
- The Hamlet of Mile End New Town
- The Parish of St. Mary Whitechapel (Portion Within the County of Middlesex) (Portion, Which Lay East of Commercial Street; North of Whitechapel High Street / Whitechapel Road)

Booth's delineations of socio-economic 'class' …

"In Poverty":
Class 'A': "Vicious" (i.e. vice-ridden); "Semi-Criminal"
Class 'B': "Very Poor"
Class 'C': "Poor" - Irregular Income
Class 'D': "Poor" - Regular but Inadequate Income

"In Comfort":
Class 'E': "Above the 'Line of Poverty'" - Regular "Standard" Income
Class 'F': "Highly Skilled Labour"
Class 'G': "Lower Middle-Class"
Class 'H': "Upper Middle-Class"

Estimated Number of Inhabitants / Percentage of Total

Class 'A': 1,691 / 4.98%
Class 'B': 3,720 / 10.95%
Classes 'C' & 'D': 11,261 / 33.15%
Sub-Total (Below the 'Line of Poverty'): 16,672 / 49.07%

Classes 'E' & 'F': 15,556 / 45.79%
Classes 'G' & 'H': 1,745 / 5.14%
Sub-Total (Above the 'Line of Poverty'): 17,301 / 50.93%

Total: 33,973 / 100.00%

"Large densely-populated block, … A large proportion of inhabitants are Jews engaged as tailors and cigar makers. Two groups of houses inhabited by many of the lowest class."

"Two groups of houses …", being almost certainly in reference to the rookeries of Great Pearl Street and Flower & Dean Street, in the Parish of Christ Church Spitalfields.